Series 5
* Alec Baldwin |no_of_episodes=26 |released=14 September - 19 October 1998 |previous=Series 4 |next=Series 6 }} The '''fifth series' of Thomas & Friends first aired on television in September 1998 in the UK and had twenty-six episodes narrated by Michael Angelis in the UK and Alec Baldwin in the US. Production With Series 5, the decision was made to write a full series of original, staff-written stories, without using the Railway Series' books as a source. One reason for this was producer Britt Allcroft's desire to create a theatrical Thomas the Tank Engine film and requested that director David Mitton show off his modelling skills. Series 5 also took on edgier and darker plot lines and included much more intense action and crashes. Some inspiration for the episodes came from a former LMR manager named David Maidment. In 1997, Maidment met with Steven Wright about the possibility of supporting the Railway Children charity and while Wright told him the series' staff commonly received such requests, they would consider. During their meeting, Maidment relayed stories about his railway experiences working in South Wales and as the manager at Crewe station. Maidment received a call asking if he would allow some of his stories to be used as material – the stories from the Railway Series were frequently based on true events and Allcroft and Mitton preferred this. Maidment agreed and was also asked to review each story to make sure that the railway in the show operated realistically. As a result, Maidment received writing credit alongside Allcroft and Mitton. 10,000 British pounds was later donated to the Railway Children for his work. The design for each new character would be chosen by David Eves and given to David Mitton for approval. For ease of filming, Series 5 would introduce larger-scale versions of the narrow gauge engines and from Series 6-12, these larger models were used almost exclusively. Originally, the character Bertram was supposed to be a tank engine, but financial difficulty in building a new model made them repaint Duke's model with Smudger's face. Episodes Songs |01-5 = :Oh yes, it's great to be an engine and go steaming along :Puff puff puffing along, peep peep peeping along... |02-1 = TroubleintheShed7.png |02-2 = Sir Topham Hatt |02-3 = Mike O'Donnell Junior Campbell |02-4 = 1 July 1999 |02-5 = :His name is Sir Topham Hatt some people say he's - Stout!! :Rather rotund, really quite round but he doesn't see it like that... |03-1 = TrustThomas47.png |03-2 = Accidents Will Happen |03-3 = Mike O'Donnell Junior Campbell |03-4 = 10 August 1999 |03-5 = :Thrills and spills on the railway, it's a life of happiness, :But sometimes impatience can lead to carelessness... |04-1 = NightTrain1.png |04-2 = Night Train |04-3 = Mike O'Donnell Junior Campbell |04-4 = 2 February 1999 |04-5 = :See how the night sky glows, :See the light from the night train... |05-1 = ThomasandPercy'sChristmasAdventure9.png |05-2 = The Snow Song |05-3 = Mike O'Donnell Junior Campbell |05-4 = 1 October 1999 |05-5 = :You wake to the silence, the bright afterglow :Now there's a surprise, for what do you know... |06-1 = TobyAndTheFlood75.png |06-2 = Harold the Helicopter |06-3 = Mike O'Donnell Junior Campbell |06-4 = 8 March 1999 |06-5 = :Who do you call when the chips are down :When your back is against the wall... |07-1 = Donald'sDuck(song).png |07-2 = Donald's Duck |07-3 = Mike O'Donnell Junior Campbell |07-4 = 1 July 1999 |07-5 = :I found a quacker in my tender. :She was very, very tame... |08-1 = Percy'sSeasideTrip3.jpg |08-2 = Percy's Seaside Trip |08-3 = Mike O'Donnell Junior Campbell |08-4 = 8 March 1999 |08-5 = :The sun is shining, it's a lovely day, :It won't be long before we're on our way... |09-1 = Heroes24.png |09-2 = Every Cloud has a Silver Lining |09-3 = Mike O'Donnell Junior Campbell |09-4 = 1 October 1999 |09-5 = :Life is full of surprises, full of ups and downs :And so to have a silver lining, first there must be cloud... |10-1 = OldIron40.png |10-2 = Come for the Ride |10-3 = Mike O'Donnell Junior Campbell |10-4 = 8 March 1999 |10-5 = :All your friends on the railway would like you all to see :Just how much fun rockin' on the railway can be... }} Characters * Thomas * Edward * Henry * Gordon * James * Percy * Toby * Duck * Oliver * Bill and Ben * Stepney * BoCo * Mavis * Skarloey * Rheneas * Duncan * Rusty * Annie and Clarabel * Troublesome Trucks * Toad * Terence * Bertie * George * Caroline * Harold * Sir Topham Hatt * Lady Hatt * Stephen Hatt * Bridget Hatt * Mrs. Kyndley * The Little Boys * The Firelighter * The Callan Stationmaster * The Crosby Stationmaster * The Maithwaite Stationmaster * The Signalman * Harold's Pilots * A Workman * Jem Cole * Farmer Trotter * Peter Sam * Henrietta * Donald * Trevor * Big Mickey * The Vicar of Wellsworth * Refreshment Lady * Nancy * The Dryaw Policeman * Farmer Finney * The Ffarquhar Stationmaster * The Storyteller * The Butler * The Crovan's Gate Policeman * The Tailor * The Mid Sodor Railway Manager * The Ffarquhar Stationmaster's Wife * The Painter * The Quarry-master * The Railway Board * The Portly Man * Duke * Bulstrode * Izzy Gomez * Märklin Engine * City of Truro (scrapped model cameo) * Douglas * Diesel * Daisy * Class 40 * Sir Handel * Jeremiah Jobling * Tom Tipper * Queen Elizabeth II * The Ffarquhar Policeman * The Stone-dropping Boys * The Barber * The Careless Cleaner * The Ffarquhar Stationmaster's Children * The Injured Sailor * S.C. Ruffey Characters Introduced * Old Slow Coach * The Horrid Lorries * Cranky * Old Bailey * The Fire Brigade * The Special Visitor * Mrs. Kyndley's Daughter * Tiger Moth's Pilot * Derek * 'Arry * Dowager Hatt * The Lighthouse Keeper * Bert * Bertram * Rusty's Ghost Engine * Butch * Tiger Moth * Thumper * The Wedding Guests * Boulder * Harry Topper Trivia * This was the first series of several things: ** The first series not to have any episodes based on the Railway Series stories by Wilbert and Christopher Awdry. ** The first series where some railway on Sodor is referred to as a railroad, Duncan Gets Spooked however, is the first episode that referred a railway as a railroad, even though it is an American term in the US. ** The first series to introduce original characters with no connection to the Railway Series. ** Alec Baldwin's first series as narrator. ** The first series not to air on Shining Time Station due to the show ending around 1996. Episodes from the fifth series were instead aired on FOX Family's Storytime with Thomas. ** The first series to use a Proteus 2000 to compose the music. ** The first series not dubbed in Ukrainian. ** The first series to air in Canada. ** The first series dubbed by The Maidstone Studios. ** The first series in which the phrase, "confusion and delay" is said. ** The first series in which Elsbridge does not appear. ** The first series to feature Thomas' unused frantic face mask from Series 3. ** The first series to feature Gordon's unused soft-looking shocked face mask from Series 2. ** The first series to feature Bertie's unused surprised face mask from Series 2. * According to an interview with David Mitton before his death in 2008, this series was supposed to be a showcase for Thomas and the Magic Railroad. * This series features more songs than any other to date, at a total of ten. * This was also the final series of several things: ** Britt Allcroft's final series as writer and producer. ** David Mitton's final series as producer. ** Angus Wright's last series as executive producer. ** The last series to premiere in the UK on Cartoon Network. ** The last series filmed completely in 4:3 full screen. ** The last series released on VHS in New Zealand. ** The last series shown in Germany and Latin America until the eighth series. ** The last series to have a railway consultant until the seventeenth series. ** The last series where Thomas' shocked face had a buck tooth. ** The last series where Percy's original wincing face mask is used on-screen. A new one would later be made for the eighth series. ** The last series to have all its episodes released on VHS in the UK and Australia. The two episodes, Bye George! and Something in the Air, were featured on the ABC For Kids compilation VHS, Play Box in the latter country. ** John L. Wright's last series as editor. * This was also the only series of several things: ** David Maidment's only series as railway consultant and writer. ** The only series where Donald appears without Douglas. ** The only series where Diesel does not appear since his introduction in the second series, possibly due to his model being recycled for 'Arry or Bert. ** The only series where Knapford Station does not appear. ** The only series recorded in Dolby Surround Sound, hence the absence of certain sound effects and music in either the UK or US version of several episodes. ** The only series to feature Thomas' unused and alternative chuckling face mask from Series 3. * Michael Angelis was not credited in the opening titles for the UK narration. However, he is credited as narrator in the Hindi narration, even though it was re-dubbed and Alec Baldwin was credited in the opening titles for the US narration. * Starting with this series up to the twelfth series, the brake sound effect from the 1964 film, The Train would be used when an engine puts on the brakes. * This series was filmed in the same room that TUGS was filmed in. * The Japanese video game Magical Adventure utilized specially shot footage from this series. Gallery Opening Titles File:ThomasandBertie26.png File:ThomasandtheGuard40.png File:ThomasandtheGuard42.png File:ThomasandtheGuard43.png References de:Staffel 5 es:Temporada 5 he:העונה החמישית ja:第5シーズン pl:Seria 5 ru:Сезон 5 zh:第5季 Category:Thomas & Friends Category:Series